Sump pump questions

I have always had a problem with water in my basement because of how the house was halfassed together. I had a small pump on a switch in a 5 gallon pail buried in my basement that did a good job until recently.  The water table has become so high that I always have water seeping in through the dirt/rock floor and the boulder the front of the house sits on.  Today I installed a bigger automatic pump and it emptied the basement in no time but now it constantly cycles as water fills the pail.  It kicks on, runs 15-20 seconds to empty the water, sits off for a minute while the pail fills, and repeats.  I already adjusted the float so it runs as long as possible but I’m concerned the cycling is bad for the pump.  My first thought was I should put in a bigger sump but I don’t know if I can break enough rock for something bigger.  

Is there a good fix?

Am I worried for nothing and the pump will be fine?

I've been going through some of the same, but am far from an expert.

My excrement pump does a similar thing, and I believe I actually oversized it, so it clears out the reservoir too quickly. Look at the manufacturer's recommendation for the reservoir. I'd suggest somewhere in the middle to upper size of their recommended range.  That, or maybe a smaller pump that doesn't evacuate so quickly. That's my problem, anyway.

Also, do you have a sediment bag outside of your reservoir? 

Good times, and good luck!

Stupid question, but is there a check valve after the pump discharge? It could be draining back into the pit through the pump. I highly doubt it but had to say anyway.

I lined the outside of the bucket with garden cloth when I buried it in a hole full of bluestone and never got much in the pail but clear water.  I did remember to get a check valve and put it in correctly.  I need to find the instructions I suspect they will want a bigger well.  

The two nice sump pumps with pits and French drain channels that I have in my finished basement are much much bigger than 5 gallons, like I could fit. 5 gallon bucket in them with room to spare on all sides.  Even so, when it really rains, they run fairly often in our crap clay soil on a hill. 

Yes, the answer is a bigger sump, I have the same issue. Fortunately I only flood a few times per decade, but when I do it is mega I think what will fail from the frequent cycling is the switch, not the motor, but time will tell, I don't feel like digging any deeper.

Sounds like a mismatch of pump capacity and sump size. 

Does the bucket fill immediately to the point where it overflows?

If not, raise your pump a inch or two. I use something like this in the bottom of my sump.

Remember that your sump doesn't need to be dry, the water level just needs to be below the floor. Otherwise, you are effectively trying to lower the water table in your yard with a sump pump.

Also, does the pump drain to a point far enough away from your foundation so that the same water isn't finding its way back in to the basement?

5 gallon sump pit? Our sump pump would be running constantly in that situation-after a good hard rain it could fill a 5 gallon bucket in 30 seconds or less. I'd estimate ours is 25-30 gallons. 

Also, it would make sense to have a second sump pump sitting on a shelf in the case of failure if it is cycling on and off that often. You may even consider having a sump pump that is too small installed basically on the bottom of the sump pit, and the "normal" one installed up higher--I have no data or real world experience to back this up, but I'd imagine that it is the cycling on/off that hurts it; the smaller pump would have less cycling on and off. My dad has two sump pumps installed, 2 sitting on the shelf, and an emergency pump (not sump specific) due to his location. In an ideal world that would ensure that the pumps would last forever and never fail, but due to the iron ochre that he has he has a pump fail about once a year.

The bucket will fill completely in about 2 minutes it I unplug the pump.  The water is being pumped about 40 feet from the house into my swamp which is starting to take over the backyard.  I have a sinking feeling that the eventual answer will involve digging a deeper pond for all the water to go.

Where does the swamp drain? Or does it drain? It sounds like it is draining into your house.

Like some have said, I think you need a bigger sump. Another thing you can do is get a pump with the switch on a tether (rather than the float on a rial or whatever), like this:

https://www.sumppumpsdirect.com/Myers-MDC33P1-Sump-Pump/p15232.html

The tether gives it more range so it won't run as often. However, you will want to make sure it still drains before the water reaches the top.

I have 2 sump pumps in the basement, and when it rains a lot they run quite often. I just replaced the cheap plastic one some previous owner installed after 11 years (and it was still working, it was just making weird noises). So they will last a while even running a lot. I also have a spare on the shelf with pipe installed that allows it to get put in place of the others in a few minutes.

You could add more sump capacity in the basement, but I'd also look into addressing yard drainage. That swamp you mention makes it sound like no matter how big you make your sump you're going to have some issues.